Delayed at Almaden Quicksilver

We had a very short drive to this morning's hike at Almaden Quicksilver County Park. We arrived shortly before 9:00 am and quickly got ready.

Today's hike would take us past the San Cristobal mine, where the mercury which gave the park its name was mined. Mercury from this mine was used to separate out gold and silver from ore during the Gold Rush of 1849.

We hiked up the Mine Hill Trail until we reached a junction. We then proceeded down the Randol Trail. This trail took us past the Buena Vista Mine Shaft. Rusty old mining equipment strewn amidst old outbuildings were visible from the trail. At the next junction we took the New Almaden Trail. Most of this park is open grassland and chaparral micro climates.

The flowers continue to be in full bloom, with many examples of Indian Paintbrush, thistles and the very spectacular California Buckeye. Some of the vistas were also very beautiful, with excellent views of the nearby neighborhoods as well as great views of Mt. Umunum and Loma Prieta, each peak with its own "antenna farm" - so useful to the amateur radio community.

At the next junction, we took the Prospect Trail up a steep climb for almost a mile. We stopped near the top for a sandwich and refreshment before continuing on. At the next junction, we rejoined the Mine Hill Trail once more, past the Catherine Tunnel and to the Castillero Trail. We intended to take the Deer Gulch Trail back to the park entrance, however, we took a wrong turn and wound up at the junction of the Mine Hill Trail and Randol Trail, close to where we started.

Here we had to make a decision. Were we lost or merely delayed? Did we go back the way we came, or would we consider this an extension? The group decided to retrace our steps to find the Deer Gulch Trail and, although I whined and grumbled a bit at walking the extra .8 miles, I did it anyway. It's all toward our training!

But where was Duane? He fell behind at the turnoff to Deer Gulch. It turned out that he took the right trail, while the rest of us took the wrong one and he reached the parking lot about 45 minutes ahead of us. It's a good thing one of us can read maps!